Antenna Placement Arrangements on Device with Extendable Display

ABSTRACT

An electronic device includes a housing having a first panel connected to a second panel movable between folded and unfolded configurations. A first antenna is located adjacent to the first panel and a second antenna is located adjacent to the second panel. The second antenna is activated when the housing is in an unfolded configuration and is deactivated when the housing is in a folded configuration.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to an electronic device, and inparticular embodiments, to a system for antenna placement arrangementson a device with an extendable display.

BACKGROUND

Portable wireless devices, such as mobile phones, tablets, andnotebooks, are increasingly used to stream movies, play games, andperform business activities. One challenge in designing portablewireless devices is that their compact form factor often limits thesize, number, and potential placement, of antenna elements on thedevice. This design challenge may become increasingly complex asadvances in wireless transmission and/or reception techniques (e.g.,high-order multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), beamforming, etc.)require the inclusion of additional antenna elements in an alreadycrowded space.

SUMMARY

Technical advantages are generally achieved by embodiments of thisdisclosure which describe systems and methods for placement andselection of antennas.

In accordance with an embodiment, an apparatus for placement andselection of antennas is provided. In this embodiment, the apparatusincludes a housing having a first panel coupled to a second panel, afirst antenna positioned adjacent to the first panel, and a secondantenna positioned adjacent to the second panel, wherein the secondantenna is activated when the housing is in an unfolded configurationand the second antenna is deactivated when the housing is in a foldedconfiguration. In one example, a shorting connection between the secondantenna and a ground plane is formed when the housing is transitionedfrom the unfolded configuration to the folded configuration. Optionally,in such an example, or in another example, the shorting connectionbetween the second antenna and the ground plane is broken when thehousing is in the unfolded configuration. Optionally, in any one of theabove mentioned examples, or in another example, the shorting connectionis formed when the second antenna comes into direct or indirect contactwith the ground plane incident to placement of the housing in the foldedconfiguration. Optionally, in any one of the above mentioned examples,or in another example, the shorting connection is formed by a switchthat is configured to close when the housing is placed in the foldedconfiguration. Optionally, in any one of the above mentioned examples,or in another example, the apparatus further includes a first displaydisposed in the first panel, a first ground plane region positionedadjacent to the first display, a second display disposed in the secondpanel, and a second ground plane region positioned adjacent to thesecond display. The second ground plane and the first ground plane arepart of a common ground plane, and a ground plane slot structurepositioned between the first ground plane region and the second groundplane region electrically isolating the first antenna from the secondantenna. Optionally, in any one of the above mentioned examples, or inanother example, the ground plane slot structure is formed of adielectric material having an approximate electrical lengthcorresponding to a quarter wavelength of an operating frequency of oneof the first or second antennas. Optionally, in any one of the abovementioned examples, or in another example, the ground plane slotstructure is a resonator having an approximate electrical lengthcorresponding to a quarter wavelength of an operating frequency of oneof the first or second antennas. Optionally, in any one of the abovementioned examples, or in another example, the first display is activewhen the housing is in the folded configuration, and the first displayand the second display are both active when the housing is in anunfolded configuration. Optionally, in any one of the above mentionedexamples, or in another example, the ground plane slot structure isprovided with a passage configured to carry one or more of data or powersignals between the first panel and the second panel. Optionally, in anyone of the above mentioned examples, or in another example, theapparatus further includes a continuous ground plane positioned adjacentto a first display disposed in the first panel and a second displaydisposed in the second panel. Optionally, in any one of the abovementioned examples, or in another example, the second antenna isselected in accordance with one or more of received signal strengthindication (RSSI), received signal code power (RSCP), bit error rate(BER), symbol error rate (SER), negative acknowledgement(NAK)/acknowledgement (ACK) ratio, link control based information, andpower control bit (PCB). Optionally, in any one of the above mentionedexamples, or in another example, the second antenna operates as adiversity antenna to the first antenna. Optionally, in any one of theabove mentioned examples, or in another example, each of the firstantenna and the second antenna being configured as multiple-input andmultiple-output (MIMO) antennas.

In accordance with another embodiment, an apparatus for placement andselection of antennas is provided. In this embodiment, the apparatusincludes a housing, a first antenna positioned in the first antennaregion, and a second antenna positioned in the second antenna region.The housing having a first panel coupled to a second panel, the firstpanel having a first antenna region, the second panel having a secondantenna region, wherein the first panel and second panel face away fromeach other when the housing is in a folded configuration. The firstantenna being electrically isolated from the second antenna, and whereinthe second antenna is activated when the housing is in an unfoldedconfiguration and deactivated when the housing is in the foldedconfiguration. In one example, a shorting connection between the secondantenna and a ground plane is formed when the housing is transitionedfrom the unfolded configuration to the folded configuration. Optionally,in any one of the above mentioned examples, or in another example, theshorting connection between the second antenna and the ground plane isbroken when the housing is in the unfolded configuration. Optionally, inany one of the above mentioned examples, or in another example, theshorting connection is formed when the second antenna comes into director indirect contact with the ground plane, the direct or indirectcontact resulting from an orientation of the second antenna to theground plane when the housing is placed in the folded configuration.Optionally, in any one of the above mentioned examples, or in anotherexample, the shorting connection is formed by a switch coupled to thehousing and is configured to close when the housing is placed in thefolded configuration. Optionally, in any one of the above mentionedexamples, or in another example, the apparatus further includes a thirdpanel including a third antenna region, wherein a third antenna isarranged in the third antenna region, and wherein the third antenna iselectrically isolated from the first antenna. Optionally, in any one ofthe above mentioned examples, or in another example, at least one of thefirst and third antennas is operable when the housing is in an unfoldedconfiguration, and wherein a shorting connection between the thirdantenna and a ground plane is formed when the housing is transitionedfrom the unfolded configuration to the folded configuration. Optionally,in any one of the above mentioned examples, or in another example, thehousing further includes a continuous ground plane disposed in the firstpanel and the second panel. Optionally, in any one of the abovementioned examples, or in another example, the second antenna regiondoes not overlap the first antenna region when the housing is in afolded configuration. Optionally, in any one of the above mentionedexamples, or in another example, the first antenna and the secondantenna are a different type of wireless antenna. Optionally, in any oneof the above mentioned examples, or in another example, the secondantenna operates as a diversity antenna to the first antenna.Optionally, in any one of the above mentioned examples, or in anotherexample, the first antenna and the second antenna are in amultiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) antenna configuration.Optionally, in any one of the above mentioned examples, or in anotherexample, the apparatus further includes a main display region disposedin the first panel and an auxiliary display region disposed in thesecond panel. The main display region being active when the housing isin the folded configuration and the main display region and theauxiliary display region being active when the housing is in an unfoldedconfiguration. Optionally, in any one of the above mentioned examples,or in another example, the apparatus further includes a first groundplane region disposed in the first panel and adjacent to the maindisplay region, a second ground plane region disposed in the secondpanel and adjacent to the auxiliary display region, and a ground planeslot structure coupling the first ground plane region to the secondground plane region. The first ground plane region and the second groundplane region forming a common ground plane. The ground plane slotstructure being configured with an approximate electrical lengthcorresponding to a quarter wavelength of an operating frequency of acellular antenna of the electronic device. Optionally, in any one of theabove mentioned examples, or in another example, the first antenna iselectrically isolated from the second antenna via the ground plane slotstructure. Optionally, in any one of the above mentioned examples, or inanother example, the ground plane slot structure includes a passageconfigured to carry one or more of data or power signals between thefirst panel and the second panel. Optionally, in any one of the abovementioned examples, or in another example, the ground plane slotstructure includes a dielectric or a resonator.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, and theadvantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptionstaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGS. 1A-D illustrate an embodiment electronic device in a folded andunfolded configuration at various viewing angles;

FIGS. 2A-C illustrate antenna regions of an embodiment electronic devicein folded and unfolded configurations at various viewing angles;

FIGS. 3A-C illustrate antenna regions of another embodiment electronicdevice in folded and unfolded configurations at various viewing angles;

FIGS. 4A-C illustrate antenna regions of another embodiment electronicdevice in folded and unfolded configurations at various viewing angles;

FIGS. 5A-C illustrate antenna regions of yet another embodimentelectronic device in folded and unfolded configurations at variousviewing angles;

FIG. 6 illustrates a ground plane and a slot structure of an embodimentelectronic device;

FIG. 7 illustrates a ground plane and a slot structure of anotherembodiment electronic device;

FIG. 8 illustrates a ground plane of an embodiment electronic device;

FIG. 9 illustrates a ground plane of another embodiment electronicdevice;

FIG. 10 illustrates placement of antennas in an embodiment electronicdevice;

FIG. 11 illustrates placement of antennas in another embodimentelectronic device;

FIG. 12A illustrates an embodiment electronic device and FIG. 12Billustrates an embodiment transceiver circuit foractivating/deactivating an auxiliary antenna based on a configuration ofa housing of the electronic device depicted in FIG. 12A;

FIGS. 13A-C illustrate an embodiment active tuner network and embodimentschematics of conventional tuning circuits;

FIG. 14 illustrates a block diagram of an embodiment processing systemfor performing methods described herein; and

FIG. 15 illustrates a block diagram of a transceiver adapted to transmitand receive signaling over a telecommunications network.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

This disclosure provides many applicable inventive concepts that can beembodied in a wide variety of specific contexts. The specificembodiments discussed are merely illustrative of specific configurationsand do not limit the scope of the invention.

Electronic devices, such as portable wireless devices, may include afoldable housing to provide an expandable viewing area while stillallowing the device to maintain a relatively compact form factor forease of transportability. As used herein, the term “foldable housing”refers to a structural arrangement of components that includes twopanels coupled together via a linkage (e.g., a hinge, a rotating orsliding joint, etc.), which can be adjusted to manipulate the relativegeometric orientation of display regions disposed on the respectivepanels. The display regions disposed on the respective panels may bedifferent areas on the same flexible display or areas on differentdisplays. A foldable housing is said to be in a “folded configuration”when display regions disposed on the respective panels are on differentgeometric planes, as may occur when one of the panels is folded behindthe other panel such that the display regions overlap—either in anopposed, facing orientation or facing in opposite directions. A foldablehousing is said to be in an “unfolded configuration” when displayregions disposed on the respective panels are substantially the samegeometric plane, as may occur when one of the panels is unfolded, orotherwise extended out, from behind the other panel. In this way, theelectronic device may have a relatively compact form factor for ease ofportability when the foldable housing is placed in the foldedconfiguration, while still having the capability to provide a largerviewing-area for the user when the foldable housing is placed in theunfolded configuration.

A electronic device generally exhibits a larger exposed surface areawhen its foldable housing is placed in the unfolded configuration, andconsequently the wireless device may be capable of supporting a morecomplex antenna configuration (e.g., greater numbers of active antennaelements) when its foldable housing is in the unfolded configurationthan when it is in the folded configuration. Embodiments of thisdisclosure provide foldable housing designs/configurations thatdynamically activate additional antennas when a device's foldablehousing is transitioned from a folded configuration to an unfoldedconfiguration, as well as deactivate the additional antennas when thedevice's foldable housing is transitioned back to the foldedconfiguration. In an embodiment, the foldable housing is configured suchthat a shorting connection is formed between one or more of the antennasand a ground plane when the foldable housing is placed in the foldedconfiguration, and broken when the foldable housing is placed in theunfolded configuration. In one example, the shorting connection isformed by the opening/closing of a switch when the housing is placed inthe folded configuration. In another example, the shorting connection isformed by virtue of a physical orientation of the antenna to the groundplane on the foldable housing such that the antenna comes into direct orindirect contact with the ground plane when the foldable housing isplaced in the folded configuration.

In an embodiment, an electronic device is provided with a housing thatmay include a first panel connected to a second panel. A first antennamay be located in the first panel and a second antenna may be located inthe second panel. The electronic device may also include a first displayon the front-side of the first panel and a second display on thefront-side of the second panel. In the folded configuration, the firstdisplay may be independently activated and the second antenna may bedeactivated by shorting the second antenna to a ground plane on thebackside of the first panel. In the unfolded configuration, the firstdisplay and the second display may both be active. In this embodiment,an electronic or mechanical switch can activate the second antenna whenthe housing is in the unfolded configuration, and a data signal may betransmitted/received using one or both antennas. When fewer than all ofthe activated antennas are used to simultaneously transmit/receive datasignals during a given time period, then the antenna(s) that are usedfor data transmission may be selected according to one or more ofreceived signal strength indication (RSSI), received signal code power(RSCP), bit error rate (BER), symbol error rate (SER), negativeacknowledgement (NAK)/acknowledgement (ACK) ratio, link control basedinformation, or power control bit (PCB). When multiple antennas are usedfor data transmissions, the first antenna and the second antenna mayoperate as diversity antennas as well as be used for multiple-input andmultiple-output (MIMO) data transmission/reception.

In an embodiment, a first ground plane region may be located beneath thefirst display and a second ground plane region may be located beneaththe second display, where the first ground plane and the second groundplane are part of a common ground plane. A ground plane slot structuremay be located between the first ground plane region and the secondground plane region, and can electrically isolate the first antenna fromthe second antenna. The ground plane slot structure may be a dielectricor a resonator having an approximate electrical length corresponding toa quarter wavelength of an operating frequency of one of the deviceantennas. The ground plane slot structure may have an opening to allowone or more of data or power signals to be routed between the firstpanel and the second panel.

In an embodiment, a third antenna region including a third antenna maybe provided in the second panel. The third antenna can be electricallyisolated from the first antenna and can be an alternative to the firstantenna when the housing is in the unfolded configuration.

FIGS. 1A-D illustrate an embodiment electronic device 100 that includesa housing 104 that can be adjusted between a folded configuration 101(FIG. 1A-B) and an unfolded or “open” configuration 102 (FIG. 1C-D). Thehousing includes first and second sections 106, 108, respectively.Housing section 106 includes an outer surface 106 a and an inner surface106 b. Likewise, housing section 108 includes an outer surface 108 a andan inner surface 108 b. Housing portions 106 and 108 can be in the formof discrete sections connected to one another along a surface 112 thatcan be in the form of a fold line, hinge or other suitable structurethat allows for relative movement of the housing portions 106, 108.Surface 112 can be continuous or non-continuous. When the housing of theelectronic device 100 is in the folded configuration 101, an auxiliarydisplay region 130 of the electronic device 100 is folded behind, or atleast partially overlaps with, a main display region 110 of theelectronic device 100 such that the main display region 110 and theauxiliary display region 130 are on different geometric planes 114, 116and face externally to render both displays viewable to the user. Inthis configuration, the outer surface 106 a of first housing portion 106is generally in contact with the outer surface 108 a of second housingportion 108. Although FIGS. 1A-1D depict the housing 104 as outwardlyfacing such that the display regions 110, 130 face away from one anotherand are exposed, or otherwise viewable, when the housing 104 is in thefolded configuration 101, it should be appreciated that embodimenthousings may also be configured to fold inwardly such that therespective display regions 110, 130 face towards one another and areprotected from the elements. Other examples are also possible. Forinstance, an embodiment housing could be configured such that onedisplay region folds, or otherwise slides, behind the other displayregion, in which case one of the display regions would be exposed and/orviewable, while the other display region is protected from the elements.

In the unfolded configuration 102, the auxiliary display region 130 ofthe electronic device 100 is extended out from behind, or otherwisepositioned alongside, the main display region 110 such that the maindisplay region 110 and the auxiliary display region 130 are on the same,or substantially similar, geometric plane 116.

The housing of the electronic device 100 may include any mechanicalsupport structure that allows the main display region 110 and/orauxiliary display region 130 to be manipulated in the manner describedherein. For example, the housing of the electronic device 100 mayinclude panels that are affixed to the main display region 110 and theauxiliary display region 130, as well as a linkage (e.g., a hinge, arotating or sliding joint, etc.) coupling the respective panels that isadapted to allow the housing to be adjusted from the foldedconfiguration 101 to the unfolded configuration 102, and vice-versa. Asanother example, the panels may be separate devices that can beconfigured into one device when coupled to each other. The act ofcoupling activates the display region on one panel as an auxiliarydisplay to a main display on another panel.

The housing of the electronic device 100 is generally composed of aconductive metal (e.g., aluminum, magnesium, etc.), plastic(polycarbonates, etc.), glass (e.g., aluminosilicate glass, etc.),and/or other materials (e.g., composites) that provide similar rigidity,strength and/or durability. In an embodiment, parts of the metal in thepanels may be used as an external antenna. In another embodiment, thepanels may be made of metal and have plastic or glass openings or bemade of plastic or glass to allow for reception or transmission of aninternal antenna.

In an embodiment, the electronic device 100 may have an active antennatuner network with impedance sensing circuits that sense a detuning ofthe antenna, for example, as a result of a user's hand interfering withthe transmission/reception of wireless signals by the antenna. An activeantenna tuner network and a few examples of a tuning circuit areprovided in FIGS. 13A-C, which are described in greater detail below.The active antenna tuner network may correct for the mismatch bychanging the capacitance of a tunable capacitor or switching the stateof a switch connected in a tuning circuit. In another embodiment, theelectronic device 100 may have an active tunable antenna with tunablecapacitor or switch to reconfigure antenna aperture or matching. Theelectronic device 100 will acquire the folding state of the device andreconfigure the tunable capacitor or switch to achieve optimal antennaperformance.

The main display region 110 and auxiliary display region 130 may belongto the same display screen or different display screens. In oneembodiment, the main display region 110 and the auxiliary display region130 are different regions on the same, continuous, flexible display. Insuch embodiment, the flexible display may be manipulated to allow theauxiliary display 130 to be bent around and behind the main display 110when the housing is in the folded configuration 101.

Although the electronic device 100 is depicted as including a singleauxiliary display region 130 of approximately the same size and shape asthe main display region 110, it should be appreciated that, in otherembodiments, electronic devices may have multiple auxiliary displays ofvarying shapes and sizes. As an example, additional auxiliary displaysmay be folded accordion style behind a main display of the device. Inanother embodiment (not shown), some but not all of the auxiliarydisplays may be unfolded and visible while other auxiliary displaysremain hidden behind the electronic device 100.

The auxiliary display 130 provides additional viewing area andadvantageously provides extra antenna placement regions in theelectronic device 100. The embodiments of this disclosure detail variousplacements of antennas and their selection in wireless devices withextendable displays.

Generally, each antenna is strategically placed to reduce the signalinterference with respect to the signal radiating from other antennas ofthe device. One effective method to improve isolation is by physicallyseparating the antennas from each other. Another method to improveisolation is by placing the antennas such that the polarization of theantennas are orthogonal to each other. As an example, antennas may bearranged at a horizontal and/or vertical offset in relation to eachother, as the signal coupling is generally reduced as a function of itsdistance. As another example, antennas may be placed perpendicular toeach other to create different polarizations.

Most modern wireless devices have several antennas of a number ofvarieties. Generally, a wireless device may have a primary cellularantenna, a diversity cellular antenna, a global positioning satellite(GPS) antenna, a WIFI antenna, and a near field communication (NFC)antenna. Other antennas may be included to achieve specificcommunication goals. Alternatively, some antennas may be omitted, forexample, to reduce the size, complexity and/or cost of the wirelessdevice. Additionally, to improve performance or as an alternative to theprimary antenna, a wireless device may have one or more of each type ofantenna. Some non-cellular antennas may be for receivers, such as in aGPS antenna, while other non-cellular antennas, such as in the WIFIantenna, may be for a transmitter and a receiver.

In a cellular device, the primary cellular antenna is the primarycommunication antenna and is responsible for the transmission andreception of analog and digital signals. Generally, for a mobile phone,the location of the primary cellular antenna is at the lower verticalposition of the cellular device. This is typically done to reduce thespecific absorption rate (SAR) and increase the total radiated power(TRP) by moving the bulk of the antenna away from the human head.

The primary cellular antenna may typically be of a planar inverted-Fantenna (PIFA), a folded inverted-F antenna, a monopole antenna, a loopantenna, microstrip patch antenna, a folded inverted conformal antennatype, or a modified version of any one of the foregoing or other type ofantennas. In general, many different types of antennas may be used tosupport the various regulatory and system requirements specific todifferent carriers.

In some devices, secondary cellular antennas or diversity antennas areadded as an alternative to the primary cellular antenna. In a typicalantenna configuration, the secondary cellular antenna or the diversityantenna is for receiving only (or for receiving and transmitting whentransmit diversity is supported). As a signal is being transmitted from,for example, a cellular tower to a wireless cellular device, thereceiving device may receive more than one copy of the original signaldue to the multipath propagation, as a result of signal reflection anddispersion. The secondary cellular antenna may be a same antenna type asthe primary cellular antenna. Alternatively, the secondary cellularantenna may be a different type of antenna that operates at a samefrequency as the primary cellular antenna.

In a wireless device having multiple diversity antennas, the wirelessdata modem selects the strongest signal from the various signal copiesreceived at the multiplicity of antennas. Alternatively, the wirelessdata modem may combine the received signals to increase the receivedsignal power level and the signal to noise ratio (SNR) of the receivedsignal by combining and weighing the signals from the different paths.Furthermore, in an antenna diversity scheme, multiple methods can beused to increase signal reliability.

In addition to diversity antennas, modern cellular devices may takeadvantage of multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) technology.Typically, a simple wireless communication system is usually of asingle-input and single-output (SISO) type. In a SISO system, a singleantenna may be used as a transmitter and a single antenna may be used asthe receiver.

MIMO is a smart antenna technology that uses a multiplicity of antennasto take advantage of multipath propagation to send and receive signalssimultaneously over the same radio channel. MIMO technology can be ofthe diversity type to improve the reliability of the signal or of thespatial-multiplexing type which increases data throughput. Other MIMOtype techniques are available that improve both the reliability and datathroughput. In all instances, MIMO relies on a plurality of antennas toimprove wireless communication performance.

MIMO technology may have two or more antennas at each of the transmit orreceive ends of the communication paths. A 2×2 MIMO is a configurationwhere two antennas are at the transmit end and two antennas are arrangedin the receive end. A 4×4 MIMO is a configuration where four antennasare at the transmit end and four antennas are at the receive end. Asanother example, an 8×8 MIMO is a configuration with eight antennas ateach of the transmit and receive ends. In general, the greater thenumber of antennas, the greater the bandwidth capacity, data speedtransfer, and signal reliability.

The physical proximity of the primary and diversity antennas in awireless device may contribute to correlation of received signal fromdifferent antennas, and as a result reduce diversity gain and MIMOthroughput. Typically, the diversity antenna is arranged at the uppervertical position of the cellular device to maximize the distancebetween it and the primary antenna.

In an embodiment, an antenna arrangement is disclosed that increasesisolation and reduces correlation between the primary and secondaryantennas in a device with an extended display. In another embodiment, aground plane slot structure separates the two ground plane regions toimprove isolation and reduce correlation between antennas.

FIGS. 2A-C illustrate an embodiment electronic device 200 of thisdisclosure in its several configurations. The electronic device 200, asillustrated in FIGS. 2A-C, is an example embodiment of the electronicdevice 100 as illustrated in FIGS. 1A-D.

In FIG. 2A, the electronic device 200 is illustrated in an unfoldedconfiguration where a main display region 110, located above a mainpanel 210, and an auxiliary display region 130, located above anauxiliary panel 220, are visible. Panels of the backside of the mainpanel 210 may be shorted to ground to deactivate the antennas located onthe backside of the auxiliary panel 220 when the antennas are shorted tothe ground plane 250 (FIG. 2C) in the folded configuration of theelectronic device 200.

In an embodiment, the main panel 210 may comprise at least a firstantenna region 230. The first antenna region 230 may be locatedvertically below the main display region 110 corresponding to theupright normal operating condition of the electronic device 200.Additional antenna regions (not shown) may be located vertically abovethe main display region 110, at the horizontal edge of the main displayregion 110, or at other advantageous locations of the main panel 210.

In an embodiment, the auxiliary panel 220 may comprise a second antennaregion 240 located vertically below the auxiliary display region 220corresponding to the upright normal operating condition of theelectronic device 200. Similar to the main panel 210, additional antennaregions (not shown) may be located vertically above the auxiliarydisplay region 130, at the horizontal edge of the auxiliary displayregion 130, or at other advantageous locations of the auxiliary panel220. Generally, the provision of additional antenna regions allow forgreater flexibility in the placement and selection of antennas.

Each first antenna region 230 and second antenna region 240 may containone or more of different or same type of internal or external antennas.In an embodiment, a primary cellular antenna may be located in firstantenna region 230. Additional antennas, such as a WIFI or a GPSantenna, may be positioned adjacent to the primary cellular antenna inthe first antenna region 230. In an embodiment, diversity or othernon-cellular type antennas may be located at other locations of the mainpanel 210.

In an embodiment, the second antenna region 240 may comprise one or moreof diversity or non-cellular type antennas. Alternatively, in anotherembodiment, the second antenna region 240 may be of a cellular typeacting as an alternative or additional antenna to the primary cellularantenna in a diversity or MIMO type configuration. In an embodiment,diversity or other non-cellular type antennas may be located at otherlocations of the auxiliary panel 220.

As shown in FIG. 2A, the first antenna region 230 and the second antennaregion 240 may have a vertical and/or horizontal offset from one anotherin the unfolded configuration. In the case where the antennas in theseregions are operating at a same frequency, the offset improves theoperational performance of the antennas and reduces co-interference.

FIG. 2B illustrates an embodiment where the auxiliary panel 220 isfolded behind the main panel 210 in the electronic device 200. In thisfolded configuration, the main display region 110 may be visible to theuser. The offset between the first antenna region 230 and the secondantenna region 240 prevents overlap in the folded configuration of anantenna located in one region with an antenna located in the otherregion.

FIG. 2C illustrates a side-view of the electronic device 200. In thisside-view of the folded configuration, the antennas in the auxiliarypanel 220 are deactivated when the antennas are shorted to the groundplane 250 on the backside of the main panel 210. The contact pointsshort the antennas in the auxiliary panel 220 to the ground planelocated on the backside of the main panel 210.

FIGS. 3A-C illustrate another embodiment electronic device 300 of thisdisclosure in several of its configurations. The electronic device 300,as illustrated in FIGS. 3A-C, is an example embodiment of the electronicdevice 100 as illustrated in FIGS. 1A-D.

FIG. 3A illustrates the electronic device 300 in an unfoldedconfiguration. The electronic device 300 comprises a main panel 210having a main display region 110, a first antenna region 230, and anauxiliary panel 220 having an auxiliary display region 130, and a secondantenna region 240. Advantageously, the electronic device 300 includes adielectric structure 350 in the auxiliary panel 220. The additionaldielectric structure 350 expands the size of the auxiliary panel 220 tobe about the same size of the main panel 210.

FIGS. 3B-C illustrate that the first antenna region 230 overlaps thedielectric structure 350 in the folded configuration. Similar to theembodiment in FIGS. 2A-C, the external antennas in the auxiliary panel220 of the electronic device 300, such as those located in the secondantenna region 240, are deactivated by short-circuiting to a groundplane 250 on the back-side of the main panel 210 in the foldedconfiguration.

FIGS. 4A-C illustrate yet another embodiment electronic device 400 ofthis disclosure in several of its configurations. The electronic device400, as illustrated in FIGS. 4A-C, is an example embodiment of theelectronic device 100 as illustrated in FIGS. 1A-D.

FIG. 4A illustrates the electronic device 400 in an unfoldedconfiguration. The electronic device 400 comprises a main panel 210having a main display region 110 and a first antenna region 230 and anauxiliary panel 220 having an auxiliary display region 130 and a secondantenna region 240. Advantageously, the electronic device 400 has athird antenna region 450 in the auxiliary panel 220. The third antennaregion 450 is perpendicular to the second antenna region 240 and at theedge of the auxiliary panel 220 opposing the main panel 210corresponding to the upright normal operating condition of theelectronic device 400.

The third antenna region 450 may contain one or more of a primarycellular antenna that may be paired with the primary cellular antennalocated in the first antenna region 230. The(se) additional antenna(s)may provide additional antenna selection diversity. Additionally,the(se) additional antenna(s) may be used as alternative antenna(s) tothe primary cellular antenna or the diversity cellular antennas or asdiversity antenna(s) for high-order MIMO and diversity operation whenthe electronic device 400 is in the unfolded configuration. In analternative embodiment, other non-cellular type antennas may beadditionally or alternatively located in the third antenna region 450.

FIG. 4B illustrates a front-view of the electronic device 400 in itsfolded configuration. FIG. 4C illustrates a side-view of the embodimentof FIG. 4B. In this folded configuration, the external antennas locatedin the auxiliary panel 220 may be shorted to a ground plane 250 locatedon the backside of the main panel 210. As illustrated in the figure, thesecond antenna region 240 and the third antenna region 450 do notoverlap the first antenna region 230 in the folded configuration.

FIGS. 5A-C illustrate yet another embodiment electronic device 500 ofthis disclosure in several of its configurations. The electronic device500, as illustrated in FIGS. 5A-C, is an example embodiment of theelectronic device 100 as illustrated in FIGS. 1A-D.

FIG. 5A illustrates the electronic device 500 in an unfoldedconfiguration. The electronic device 500 comprises a main panel 210having a main display region 110 and a first antenna region 230, and anauxiliary panel 220 having an auxiliary display region 130, a secondantenna region 240, and a third antenna region 450. Advantageously, theelectronic device 500 has a dielectric structure 560 in the auxiliarypanel 220.

FIG. 5B illustrates a front-view of the electronic device 500 in itsfolded configuration. FIG. 5C illustrates a side-view of the embodimentof FIG. 5B. FIGS. 5B-C illustrate that the first antenna region 230overlaps the dielectric structure 560 in the folded configuration.Similar to the embodiment electronic device 400, as illustrated in FIGS.4A-C, the external antenna(s) located in the second antenna region 240and the third antenna region 450 are deactivated by shorting theantennas to a ground plane region 250 on the back-side of the main panel210 in the folded configuration.

FIG. 6 illustrates ground plane regions 670, 672 of the main panel 210and the auxiliary panel 220 (respectively), which are located beneaththe main display region 110 and auxiliary display region 130(respectively) of the electronic device 200 in FIGS. 2A-C. Please notethat the main display region 110 and auxiliary display region 130 arenot depicted in FIG. 6 so that the ground plane regions 670, 672, whichare located beneath the main display region 110 and auxiliary displayregion 130, can be clearly viewed. It should be appreciated that theground plane regions 670, 672 may be part of a common ground plane. Aground plane region 670 is located beneath the main display region 110.Ground plane region 670 may extend partially to region 231 to facilitatethe shorting of antennas in region 240 to a ground plane when thehousing is in the folded configuration. A ground plane region 672 islocated beneath the auxiliary display region 130. The ground planeregions 670, 672 are generally composed of a conductive material, suchas copper.

In a foldable wireless device, having a multiplicity of antennas locatedon several panels, the folding and unfolding may change the relativeposition of each antenna to one another. The change in relative positionmay cause a change in the impedance characteristics of the device. Theantennas located in the main panel 210, such as those arranged in thefirst antenna region 230 of electronic device 200, may be detuned as aresult of the unfolding. As a result, adaptive or passive antenna tuningmethods may be introduced to minimize the impedance changes.

In an embodiment, a ground plane slot structure 674 separating the firstground plane region 670 and the second ground plane region 672 mayimprove antenna isolation and reduce antenna correlation betweenantennas positioned in the first antenna region 230 and the secondantenna region 240 when the device 200 is in the unfolded configuration.

In an embodiment as illustrated in FIG. 6, the first ground plane region670 and the second ground plane region 672 are separated, at the edge ofthe two displays, by a vertically placed ground plane slot structure674. The ground plane slot structure 674 may have an electrical lengthapproximately equal to a quarter wavelength of the operating frequencyof an antenna of the electrical device 200. As an example, ground planeslot structure 674 may have a length of approximately 30 mm to provideextra isolation for two antennas operating at 2.5 GHz.

The ground plane slot structure 674 may have a narrow routing channel676 to allow for RF and digital signals to be passed between thecircuitry located between the main panel 210 and the auxiliary panel220.

The ground plane slot structure 674 suppresses mutual coupling by actingas a resonator band-stop filter between the multiple antennas. In anembodiment, the ground plane slot structure 674 may be a resonator or adielectric. Additional methods of creating the ground plane slotstructure 674 may be used to achieve similar results. As an example,multiple slots with different lengths can be used to increase theisolation at multiple bands. In another embodiment, the ground planeslot structure 674 can have multiple branches (not shown), where eachbranch can have different lengths to increase the isolation overmultiple bands. The effective electrical length of the ground plane slotstructure 674, targeting a high isolation band over the coverage of theantennas, can be tuned electrically by RF switches or tunablecapacitors. Several examples of conventional tuning circuits areillustrated in FIGS. 13B and 13C, which are described in greater detailbelow.

FIG. 7 illustrates ground plane region 670, 672 of the main panel 210and the auxiliary panel 220 (respectively), which are located beneaththe main display region 110 and the auxiliary display region 130(respectively) of the electronic device 300 in FIGS. 3A-C. The maindisplay region 110 and auxiliary display region 130 are not depicted inFIG. 7 so that the ground plane regions 670, 672, which are locatedbeneath the main display region 110 and auxiliary display region 130,can be clearly viewed. The ground plane region 670 may extend partiallyto region 231 to facilitate the shorting of antennas in region 240 to aground plane when the housing is in the folded configuration. The groundplane regions 670, 672 are separated by a ground plane slot structure674 comprising a narrow opening 676.

FIG. 8 illustrates a ground plane regions 870, 872 of the main panel 210and the auxiliary panel 220 respectively located beneath the maindisplay region 110 and the auxiliary display region 130 of theelectronic device 400, as originally illustrated in FIGS. 4A-C. The maindisplay region 110 and auxiliary display region 130 are not depicted inFIG. 8 so that the ground plane regions 870, 872, which are locatedbeneath the main display region 110 and auxiliary display region 130(respectively), can be clearly viewed. It should be appreciated that theground plane regions 670, 672 may be part of a common ground plane.Ground plane region 870 may extend partially to region 231 to facilitatethe shorting of antennas in region 240 to a ground plane when thehousing is in a folded configuration.

FIG. 9 illustrates a ground plane region 870 of the main panel 210 andthe auxiliary panel 220 respectively located beneath the main displayregion 110 and the auxiliary display region 130 of the electronic device500, as originally illustrated in FIGS. 5A-C. Similar to the electronicdevice 400, the continuous ground plane region extends from the areabeneath the main display region 110 through the area beneath theauxiliary display region 130, and this ground plane region may extend toregion 231 to facilitate the shorting of antennas in region 240 to aground plane in the folded configuration.

In the electronic devices 400 and 500, as illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9,the antenna(s) located in the third antenna region 450 of the auxiliarypanel 220 may be an alternative and/or diversity antenna(s) to theprimary cellular antenna located in the first antenna region 230 of themain panel 210. The antennas positioned in the second antenna region 240may be non-cellular antennas or diversity antennas. The cellularantennas in the first antenna region 230 and the third antenna region450 are isolated from each other by their physical distance and/orpolarization. Therefore, the additional ground plane slot structure 674may be unnecessary. Although, the electronic devices 400 and 500 inFIGS. 8 and 9 do not have the ground plane slot structure 674 previouslydescribed, the addition of the ground plane slot structure 674 in theelectronic devices 400 and 500 may improve isolation and reduce mutualcoupling between the antennas and can be advantageous.

FIG. 10 is an embodiment illustrating possible antenna placements invarious antenna regions of the electronic device 200. Similar placementof antennas can be applied to the electronic device 300. The antennaarrangements, as shown, display one of the many possible arrangements ofantennas in a foldable electronic device. As illustrated, an additionalantenna region 1092 located at the opposite edge of the main panel 210to the first antenna region 230 is shown, that may be used as anadditional antenna placement location. Similarly, an additional antennaregion 1094 located at the opposite edge of the auxiliary panel 220 tothe second antenna region 240 is shown, that may be used as anadditional antenna placement location. Further antenna locations (notshown) may also be used.

In an embodiment, two antennas are positioned adjacent to each other infirst antenna region 230 of the main panel 210. The largest antenna 1070(ANT0) may be a cellular antenna. The smaller antenna 1072 (ANT2) may bea primary cellular antenna operating at a different frequency band thanthe 1070 (ANT0) or one of a diversity antenna or non-cellular antennasuch as a GPS or a WIFI antenna.

Additionally, in the top antenna region 1092 of the main panel 210,three antennas are positioned adjacent to each other. The third antenna1078 (ANT₃) and the fourth antenna 1074 (ANT₄) may be one of a diversityantenna and/or non-cellular antenna. The larger antenna 1076 (ANT1) maybe a cellular antenna that can transmit and receive signals or adiversity antenna operating at low bands. ANT1 may be activated inaddition to or as an alternative to the primary cellular antenna ANT01070.

In an embodiment, in the second antenna region 240 of the auxiliarypanel 220, two antennas (ANT₇ 1084 and ANT8 1086) may be arrangedadjacent to each other. In the top antenna region 1094 of the auxiliarypanel 220, two additional antennas (ANT₅ 1080 and ANT6 1082) are alsoarranged adjacent to each other. The four antennas ANT₅-8 1080-1086 maybe of a diversity and/or non-cellular type of an antenna and can be usedas higher order diversity, MIMO antenna, or an alternative antenna tothe antennas in the main panel 210.

FIG. 11 is an embodiment illustrating possible antenna placements invarious antenna regions of the electronic device 400. Similar placementof antennas can be applied to the electronic device 500. The antennaarrangements, as shown, display one of the many possible arrangements ofantennas in a foldable electronic device. In addition to first antennaregion 230, an additional region 1092 located at the opposite edge ofthe main panel 210 is shown that can be used as a placement foradditional antennas. Similarly, an additional region 1094 located at theopposite edge of the auxiliary panel 220 to the second antenna region240 is shown that can be used as a placement for additional antennas inthe auxiliary panel 220. Further antenna placement locations (not shown)may be used for antenna placement.

In an embodiment, and similar to the electronic device 200 asillustrated in FIG. 10, the electronic device 400 has a first antennaregion 230 in the main panel 210 with two antennas that may bepositioned adjacent to each other. The largest antenna 1070 (ANT0) maybe a cellular antenna. The smaller antenna 1072 (ANT2) may be a primarycellular antenna operating at a different frequency band than the 1070(ANT0) or one of a diversity antenna or non-cellular antenna type.Additionally, in the top region 1092 of the main panel 210, threeantennas are positioned adjacent to each other. The third antenna 1078(ANT₃) and fourth antenna 1074 (ANT₄) may be one of a diversity antennaand/or non-cellular antenna. The larger antenna 1076 (ANT1) may be acellular antenna that can transmit and receive signals, or a diversityantenna operating at low bands. ANT1 1076 may be activated in additionto or as an alternative to the primary cellular antenna ANT0 1070.

In the second antenna region 240 of the auxiliary panel 220, twoantennas (ANT₇ 1084 and ANT8 1086) may be arranged adjacent to eachother. In the top region 1094 of the auxiliary panel 220, two additionalantennas (ANT₅ 1080 and ANT6 1082) may be arranged adjacent to eachother. The four antennas ANT₅-8 1080-1086 may be of a diversity and/ornon-cellular type of an antenna and can be used as higher order(4×4,8×8) diversity, MIMO antenna, or an alternative antenna to the antennasin the main panel 210.

In the third antenna region 450 of the auxiliary panel 220, two antennas(ANT0_ALT 1190 and ANT1_ALT 1188) may be arranged adjacent to eachother. ANT0_ALT 1190 and ANT1_ALT 1188 may be a cellular antenna used asan alternative to the primary antennas ANT0 1070 and ANT1 1076 in theunfolded configuration. Similar to the antennas ANT0 1070 and ANT1 1076,the antennas ANT0_ALT 1190 and ANT1_ALT 1188 may be used to transmit andreceive signals in the unfolded configuration.

The arrangement of the antennas in FIGS. 10 and 11 illustrate anembodiment configuration of the multiplicity of antennas advantageouslypositioned to implement MIMO, diversity techniques, or any other type ofmultiple antenna configurations that may be selected to achieve similarresults.

Generally, the electronic devices 200, 300, 400, and 500 may operate ineither the folded or the unfolded configuration. Several methods may beimplemented to select and activate the antennas when the device is inone of its folded or unfolded configurations. An external antennalocated in one of the various regions of the auxiliary panel 220 may beshorted to a ground plane located on the backside of the main panel 210and deactivated in the folded configuration.

As previously described, an electronic device 100 may have severalantennas of a number of varieties. The auxiliary panel 220 mayadvantageously provide additional antenna regions that can improve datathroughput, reliability, and transfer speed. As the number of activeantennas in the electronic device 100 varies in the unfolded or foldedconfiguration, several methods may be used to favorably select theoperational antennas of the electronic device 100. The selection ofantennas may be based on minimizing coupling between available antennasor improving data transfer.

In an embodiment, the antenna selection may be triggered based on amechanical action of the folding of the antenna. The mechanical triggermay be at the edge or hinge of the electronic devices 200, 300, 400, and500 or any other part of the main panel 210 or auxiliary panel 220 thatcan be activated as a result of the action of folding and unfolding.

Alternatively, an electronic sensor or electrical circuit may beimplemented to indicate the folding or unfolding of the antennas. As anexample, an optical sensor, Hall effect (magnetic) sensor may bepositioned at an advantageous position on the electronic device 100 thatcan detect the event of folding and unfolding.

In another embodiment, the antenna selection can be triggered based onan algorithm that switches between the active antennas in accordancewith a received signal strength indication (RSSI) or received signalcode power (RSCP) at one or more of the antennas while the device is inthe unfolded configuration 102. In an alternative embodiment, theantenna selection may be triggered based on the link control basedinformation or power control bit (PCB), bit error rate (BER), symbolerror rate (SER), negative acknowledgement (NAK)/acknowledgement (ACK)ratio, or link control based information. The antenna with highestperformance is selected as the primary receive and/or transmit antenna.

As an example, and as previously mentioned in regards to multipathpropagation, the receiving device may switch the primary receive chainbetween the active antennas in accordance with a received signalstrength indication (RSSI). The wireless device modem may select thestrongest signal from the various signals received at the multiplicityof antennas.

As mentioned above, in some embodiments, a shorting connection between aground plane and an auxiliary antenna is formed as a resulting of anorientation of the auxiliary antenna to the ground plane when thehousing is placed in the folded configuration. In other embodiments, theshorting connection is formed by a switch that is configured to closewhen the housing is placed in the folded configuration. By way example,a switch may be controlled by a configuration sensor, which actuates anormally open switch (or de-actuates a normally closed switch) to formthe shorting connection upon sensing that the housing has been placed inthe folded configuration.

FIG. 12A illustrates an embodiment electronic device 1200, and FIG. 12Billustrates a transceiver circuit 1250 in the embodiment electronicdevice 1200 that includes a sensor 1202 for detecting whether a housing104 of the embodiment electronic device 1200 is in a folded or unfoldedconfiguration. Upon detecting that the housing 104 is in the foldedconfiguration, the sensor 1202 closes the switch 1240, thereby forming ashorting connection between the auxiliary antenna 1220 and the groundplane 1230. Upon detecting that the housing 104 is in the unfoldedconfiguration, the sensor 1202 opens the switch 1240, thereby allowingthe transmit (TX)/receive (RX) chain 1210 to transmit/receive signalsover the auxiliary antenna 1220.

The switch 1240 may be any electronic device capable of breaking aconnection between the auxiliary antenna 1220 and the ground plane 1230,e.g., a normally-open/normally-closed electromagnetic switch, atransistor, etc. It should be appreciated that the configuration sensor1202 may sense the configuration of the housing 104 in a variety ofdifferent ways. By way of example, the configuration sensor 1202 maymonitor a physical orientation of a linkage 1204 (e.g., a hinge) on thehousing 104, and determine that housing 104 has been placed in thefolded configuration when the linkage satisfies a criteria (e.g., whenan angle of the linkage is at or near 180 degrees, etc.).

As another example, the configuration sensor 1202 may monitor a relativeorientation of panels coupled to the housing 104, and determine that thehousing 104 has been placed in the folded configuration when the panelscome into physical contact. Other examples are also possible.

FIGS. 13A-13C illustrate a block diagram of an active antenna tunernetwork 1300 and several examples of a conventional tuning circuit 13201330.

FIG. 13A Illustrates a block diagram of an embodiment active tunernetwork 1300, which may be installed in a host device. As shown, theactive tuner network 1300 includes a modem 1302, one or more sensors1304, an amplifier 1306, a tuning circuit 1308, and an antenna 1310,which may (or may not) be arranged as shown in FIG. 13A.

The modem 1302 may include a processor and a memory. The processor maybe any component or collection of components adapted to performcomputations and/or other processing related tasks, and the memory maybe any component or collection of components adapted to storeprogramming and/or instructions for execution by the processor.

The sensors 1304 may include one or more of a capacitive touch sensor, aproximity sensor, or a sensor probe that detects a change in the loadingcondition of the antenna 1310. The sensors may, for example, include ahigh pass filter or a detector circuit that determines antenna loadingconditions. The change in the loading condition may be a result of auser's hand interfering with the transmission/reception of wirelesssignals by the antenna. In another example, the loading condition may bea result of the interference or interaction between the multipleantennas in the wireless device in the folded and the unfoldedconfiguration of the wireless device.

The amplifier 1306 may be a high power amplifier in the transmit pathand a low noise amplifier in the receive path. In an embodiment, theamplifier 1306 may include several amplifiers to amplify the signal inmultiple stages (not shown). The receive path and the transmit path maybe isolated from each other using a circulator or a switch (not shown).In the transmit configuration, the amplifier 1306 receives a signal fromthe modem and amplifies the signal to be transmitted via the antenna1310. In the receive configuration, the amplifier 1306 receives a signalfrom the antenna 1310 and amplifies the signal to be received at themodem 1302.

The tuning circuit 1308 includes one or more circuits comprising one ormore of a capacitor and/or an inductor. In an embodiment, the tuningcircuit 1308 may also comprise a switch that switches between severalmatched networks based on a control signal. In another embodiment, thetuning circuit 1308 may comprise a plurality of capacitors and inductorsthat are switched in and out of the circuit to match the impedance atthe load. Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that thetuning circuit 1308 may comprise a variety of components and schematicsto match the impedance at the antenna as a result of a variable load.FIGS. 13B-C illustrate a few examples of a simple RF tuning circuit,which are further described below.

In the transmit and receive configurations, the modem 1302 receives theloading condition status from the sensors 1304. The modem 1302determines the appropriate matching network at the tuning circuit 1308.The modem 1302 sends a control signal to the tuning circuit 1308, forexample, upon detecting of a change in the loading condition of theantenna, to adapt and match to the impedance change at the antenna 1310.

FIG. 13B illustrates a conventional parallel-resonant tuning circuit1320 that includes an inductor 1322 and a capacitor 1324 arranged inparallel. FIG. 13C illustrates a conventional series-resonant tuningcircuit 1330 that includes an inductor 1334 and a capacitor 1334arranged in series. The tuning circuit 1308 in FIG. 13A may include oneor more of each of the parallel-resonant tuning circuit 1320 and theseries-resonant tuning circuit 1330. The various components may includeother components, for example, a switch (not shown) that can vary thearrangement of components to achieve a desired tuning network. In someembodiments, the capacitor 1324 1334 and inductor 1322 1324 may be avariable capacitor and a variable inductors and may be adaptively tuned.

FIG. 14 illustrates a block diagram of an embodiment processing system1400 for performing methods described herein, which may be installed ina host device. As shown, the processing system 1400 includes a processor1404, a memory 1406, and interfaces 1410-1414, which may (or may not) bearranged as shown in FIG. 14. The processor 1404 may be any component orcollection of components adapted to perform computations and/or otherprocessing related tasks, and the memory 1406 may be any component orcollection of components adapted to store programming and/orinstructions for execution by the processor 1404. In an embodiment, thememory 1406 includes a non-transitory computer readable medium. Theinterfaces 1410, 1412, 1414 may be any component or collection ofcomponents that allow the processing system 1400 to communicate withother devices/components and/or a user. For example, one or more of theinterfaces 1410, 1412, 1414 may be adapted to communicate data, control,or management messages from the processor 1404 to applications installedon the host device and/or a remote device. As another example, one ormore of the interfaces 1410, 1412, 1414 may be adapted to allow a useror user device (e.g., personal computer (PC), etc.) tointeract/communicate with the processing system 1400. The processingsystem 1400 may include additional components not depicted in FIG. 14,such as long-term storage (e.g., non-volatile memory, etc.).

In some embodiments, the processing system 1400 is included in a networkdevice that is accessing, or part otherwise of, a telecommunicationsnetwork. In one example, the processing system 1400 is in a network-sidedevice in a wireless or wireline telecommunications network, such as abase station, a relay station, a scheduler, a controller, a gateway, arouter, an applications server, or any other device in thetelecommunications network. In other embodiments, the processing system1400 is in a user-side device accessing a wireless or wirelinetelecommunications network, such as a mobile station, a user equipment(UE), a personal computer (PC), a tablet, a wearable communicationsdevice (e.g., a smartwatch, etc.), or any other device adapted to accessa telecommunications network, directly or indirectly through anintermediary device.

In some embodiments, one or more of the interfaces 1410, 1412, 1414connects the processing system 1400 to a transceiver adapted to transmitand receive signaling over the telecommunications network. FIG. 15illustrates a block diagram of a transceiver 1400 adapted to transmitand receive signaling over a telecommunications network. The transceiver1500 may be installed in a host device. As shown, the transceiver 1500comprises a network-side interface 1502, a coupler 1504, a transmitter1506, a receiver 1508, a signal processor 1510, and a device-sideinterface 1512. The network-side interface 1502 may include anycomponent or collection of components adapted to transmit or receivesignaling over a wireless or wireline telecommunications network. Thecoupler 1504 may include any component or collection of componentsadapted to facilitate bi-directional communication over the network-sideinterface 1502. The transmitter 1506 may include any component orcollection of components (e.g., up-converter, power amplifier, etc.)adapted to convert a baseband signal into a modulated carrier signalsuitable for transmission over the network-side interface 1502. Thereceiver 1508 may include any component or collection of components(e.g., down-converter, low noise amplifier, etc.) adapted to convert acarrier signal received over the network-side interface 1502 into abaseband signal. The signal processor 1510 may include any component orcollection of components adapted to convert a baseband signal into adata signal suitable for communication over the device-side interface(s)1512, or vice-versa. The device-side interface(s) 1512 may include anycomponent or collection of components adapted to communicatedata-signals between the signal processor 1510 and components within thehost device (e.g., the processing system 1400, local area network (LAN)ports, etc.).

The transceiver 1400 may transmit and receive signaling over any type ofcommunications medium. In some embodiments, the transceiver 1500transmits and receives signaling over a wireless medium. For example,the transceiver 1500 may be a wireless transceiver adapted tocommunicate in accordance with a wireless telecommunications protocol,such as a cellular protocol (e.g., long-term evolution (LTE), etc.), awireless local area network (WLAN) protocol (e.g., Wi-Fi, etc.), or anyother type of wireless protocol (e.g., Bluetooth, near fieldcommunication (NFC), etc.). In such embodiments, the network-sideinterface 1502 comprises one or more antenna/radiating elements. Forexample, the network-side interface 1502 may include a single antenna,multiple separate antennas, or a multi-antenna array configured formulti-layer communication, e.g., single input multiple output (SIMO),multiple input single output (MISO), multiple input multiple output(MIMO), etc. In other embodiments, the transceiver 1500 transmits andreceives signaling over a wireline medium, e.g., twisted-pair cable,coaxial cable, optical fiber, etc. Specific processing systems and/ortransceivers may utilize all of the components shown, or only a subsetof the components, and levels of integration may vary from device todevice.

Although the present disclosure has been described with reference tospecific features and embodiments thereof, it is evident that variousmodifications and combinations can be made thereto without departingfrom scope of the disclosure. The specification and drawings are,accordingly, to be regarded simply as an illustration of the disclosureas defined by the appended claims, and are contemplated to cover any andall modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents that fallwithin the scope of the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. An electronic device comprising: a housingcomprising a first panel coupled to a second panel; a first antennapositioned adjacent to the first panel; and a second antenna positionedadjacent to the second panel, wherein the second antenna is activatedwhen the housing is in an unfolded configuration, and the second antennais deactivated when the housing is in a folded configuration.
 2. Theelectronic device of claim 1, wherein a shorting connection between thesecond antenna and a ground plane is formed when the housing istransitioned from the unfolded configuration to the foldedconfiguration.
 3. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the shortingconnection between the second antenna and the ground plane is brokenwhen the housing is in the unfolded configuration.
 4. The electronicdevice of claim 3, wherein the shorting connection is formed when thesecond antenna comes into direct or indirect contact with the groundplane incident to placement of the housing in the folded configuration.5. The electronic device of claim 3, wherein the shorting connection isformed by a switch that is configured to close when the housing isplaced in the folded configuration.
 6. The electronic device of claim 1,further comprising: a first display disposed in the first panel; a firstground plane region positioned adjacent to the first display; a seconddisplay disposed in the second panel; a second ground plane regionpositioned adjacent to the second display, wherein the second groundplane and the first ground plane are part of a common ground plane; anda ground plane slot structure positioned between the first ground planeregion and the second ground plane region electrically isolating thefirst antenna from the second antenna.
 7. The electronic device of claim6, wherein the ground plane slot structure is formed of a dielectricmaterial having an approximate electrical length corresponding to aquarter wavelength of an operating frequency of one of the first orsecond antennas.
 8. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the groundplane slot structure is a resonator having an approximate electricallength corresponding to a quarter wavelength of an operating frequencyof one of the first or second antennas.
 9. The electronic device ofclaim 6, wherein the first display is active when the housing is in thefolded configuration, and the first display and the second display areboth active when the housing is in an unfolded configuration.
 10. Theelectronic device of claim 6, wherein the ground plane slot structure isprovided with a passage configured to carry one or more of data or powersignals between the first panel and the second panel.
 11. The electronicdevice of claim 1, further comprising a continuous ground planepositioned adjacent to a first display disposed in the first panel and asecond display disposed in the second panel.
 12. The electronic deviceof claim 1, further comprising a switch that activates the secondantenna when the housing is in the unfolded configuration.
 13. Theelectronic device of claim 1, wherein the second antenna is selected inaccordance with one or more of received signal strength indication(RSSI), received signal code power (RSCP), bit error rate (BER), symbolerror rate (SER), negative acknowledgement (NAK)/acknowledgement (ACK)ratio, link control based information, and power control bit (PCB). 14.The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the second antenna operates asa diversity antenna to the first antenna.
 15. The electronic device ofclaim 1, each of the first antenna and the second antenna beingconfigured as multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) antennas.
 16. Anelectronic device comprising: a housing comprising a first panel coupledto a second panel, the first panel comprising a first antenna region,the second panel comprising a second antenna region, wherein the firstpanel and second panel face away from each other when the housing is ina folded configuration; a first antenna positioned in the first antennaregion; and a second antenna positioned in the second antenna region,wherein the first antenna is electrically isolated from the secondantenna, and wherein the second antenna is activated when the housing isin an unfolded configuration and deactivated when the housing is in thefolded configuration.
 17. The electronic device of claim 16, wherein ashorting connection between the second antenna and a ground plane isformed when the housing is transitioned from the unfolded configurationto the folded configuration.
 18. The electronic device of claim 17,wherein the shorting connection between the second antenna and theground plane is broken when the housing is in the unfoldedconfiguration.
 19. The electronic device of claim 18, wherein theshorting connection is formed when the second antenna comes into director indirect contact with the ground plane, the direct or indirectcontact resulting from an orientation of the second antenna to theground plane when the housing is placed in the folded configuration. 20.The electronic device of claim 18, wherein the shorting connection isformed by a switch coupled to the housing and is configured to closewhen the housing is placed in the folded configuration.
 21. Theelectronic device of claim 16, further comprising a third panelincluding a third antenna region, wherein a third antenna is arranged inthe third antenna region, and wherein the third antenna is electricallyisolated from the first antenna.
 22. The electronic device of claim 21,wherein at least one of the first and third antennas is operable whenthe housing is in an unfolded configuration, and wherein a shortingconnection between the third antenna and a ground plane is formed whenthe housing is transitioned from the unfolded configuration to thefolded configuration.
 23. The electronic device of claim 21, wherein thehousing further comprises a continuous ground plane disposed in thefirst panel and the second panel.
 24. The electronic device of claim 16,wherein the second antenna region does not overlap the first antennaregion when the housing is in a folded configuration.
 25. The electronicdevice of claim 16, wherein the first antenna and the second antenna area different type of wireless antenna.
 26. The electronic device of claim16, the second antenna operates as a diversity antenna to the firstantenna.
 27. The electronic device of claim 16, wherein the firstantenna and the second antenna are in a multiple-input andmultiple-output (MIMO) antenna configuration.
 28. The electronic deviceof claim 16, further comprising: a main display region disposed in thefirst panel, wherein the main display region is active when the housingis in the folded configuration; and an auxiliary display region disposedin the second panel, wherein the main display region and the auxiliarydisplay region are active when the housing is in an unfoldedconfiguration.
 29. The electronic device of claim 28, furthercomprising: a first ground plane region disposed in the first panel andadjacent to the main display region; a second ground plane regiondisposed in the second panel and adjacent to the auxiliary displayregion, the first ground plane region and the second ground plane regionforming a common ground plane; and a ground plane slot structurecoupling the first ground plane region to the second ground planeregion, the ground plane slot structure being configured with anapproximate electrical length corresponding to a quarter wavelength ofan operating frequency of a cellular antenna of the electronic device.30. The electronic device of claim 29, wherein the first antenna iselectrically isolated from the second antenna via the ground plane slotstructure.
 31. The electronic device of claim 29, the ground plane slotstructure including a passage configured to carry one or more of data orpower signals between the first panel and the second panel.
 32. Theelectronic device of claim 29, wherein the ground plane slot structurecomprises a dielectric or a resonator.